Finalize and implement the process for trafficking victims to automatically receive legal assistance. * Complete and disseminate SOPs to enable victims to automatically access social workers and medical care. * Fully implement and train officials on the victim identification and referral protocol and new victim service processing SOPs in order to identify and provide services – including shelter services – for trafficking victims, especially among at-risk groups, including Haitian migrants and Cuban government-affiliated workers. * Enable victims to testify from abroad. * Protect victims’ identities during trials. * Consult survivors on laws and policies. * Improve investigation of online trafficking methods and cooperation between the TIP Unit and the Cybercrime Unit. * Continue efforts to investigate and prosecute traffickers – including officials complicit in trafficking crimes – under the trafficking law and seek adequate penalties for guilty traffickers. * Provide adequate and dedicated funding for the NAP and government departments carrying out anti-trafficking activities, including monitoring of remote areas and screening of migrant workers and other visitors by immigration officials. * Train judges at all levels of the judiciary in human trafficking, trauma-informed and victim-centered approaches, and the trafficking law, including sentences. * Ensure adequate oversight of policy implementation. * Consistently seek restitution for victims and consider maintaining a victim compensation fund. * Develop and execute a robust monitoring and evaluation framework, publish the results, and report on the hotline’s effectiveness.

The government slightly increased prosecution efforts. Article 334 of the criminal code criminalized sex trafficking and labor trafficking and prescribed penalties of up to nine years’ imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 Surinamese dollars (SRD) ($2,723) for offenses involving a victim 16 years of age or older, and up to 12 years’ imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 SRD ($2,723) for those involving a victim younger than the age of 16. These penalties were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex trafficking, commensurate with those prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape.

Police initiated 15 investigations of 16 Surinamese and foreign suspects, including 14 for sex trafficking and two for labor trafficking, compared with 15 investigations in 2022. Two investigations led to the opening of separate investigations into money laundering and the financial assets of five suspects. The government prosecuted 15 traffickers (13 for sex trafficking and two for labor trafficking), compared with prosecuting 16 suspected traffickers in 2022. One investigation involved an allegedly complicit police inspector associated with the owner of a commercial sex establishment charged with human trafficking and running an illegal brothel. Another case involved three suspects in a familial child trafficking case, including the mother of the victim and two men. Prosecutors closed three prosecutions, one because of a lack of victim cooperation. Courts convicted and sentenced one 17-year-old Surinamese girl for exploiting a 15-year-old girl in sex trafficking to 14 months’ imprisonment, two years’ probation, and guidance counseling with special supervision as a minor; the government reported screening the suspected trafficker in advance of trial proceedings to ensure she was not a trafficking victim. This compared with convicting three individuals under the trafficking law and 10 individuals, including two police officers, under other laws in the previous reporting period. In September 2023, the government deported a male People’s Republic of China (PRC) national convicted of labor trafficking in 2022 after he became eligible for parole after serving two-thirds of his sentence and barred him from entering the country for five years.

The police’s TIP Unit, exclusively responsible for human trafficking and migrant smuggling cases, added three officers, bringing the total from 11 to 14. The TIP Unit cooperated on trafficking investigations with the Military Police’s immigration office, the Alien Affairs Office, the Ministry of Social Affairs, and the Police Youth Affairs Department. Observers noted there were no complaints or indications of corruption in the TIP Unit, despite some reports of low-level corruption in other police units. The TIP Unit referred trafficking investigations to the Trafficking in Persons Desk (TIP Desk) at the Prosecutors’ Office, whose three members specialized in, but were not solely dedicated to, handling trafficking cases. Observers and officials noted the TIP Unit and TIP Desk collaborated well; the TIP Desk advocated for any extra resources to be given to the TIP Unit despite its own needs. Prosecutors used Spanish-language translators to obtain testimony against three suspects. The Court of Justice ruled on trafficking cases brought by the Prosecutors’ Office, but its members did not have a specialization in trafficking. The Prosecutors’ Office noted that in practice, one judge handled all trafficking cases and inconsistently convicted traffickers according to the definition of trafficking under the law. The Court of Justice expanded to two more districts in which the primary residents were Indigenous and tribal communities, potentially improving access to justice for these populations. Existing agency budgets paid for ongoing anti-trafficking efforts, without a specific or additional allocation. The TIP Unit and TIP Desk lacked sufficient funding and resources and some officers required further training on investigative techniques and victim identification. Although the TIP Unit was responsible for anti-trafficking efforts across the country, it relied on local police units in the interior of the country; this at times limited its efficacy, although observers noted recent improvements in collaboration in those regions. In conjunction with the Prosecutors’ Office and the Alien Police, the TIP Unit conducted inspections of mining areas in the interior, nightclubs, and places where vulnerable migrants lived. The TIP Unit reported difficulties inspecting private homes where commercial sex reportedly took place, along with commercial sex advertised through social media.

The government cooperated with foreign law enforcement in an investigation after the foreign victims requested help from their embassy. The government cooperated with INTERPOL on other investigations. The Ministry of Justice and Police signed a cooperation agreement with counterparts in Sint Maarten, Curaçao, and Aruba on cross-border crime, human trafficking, and judicial cooperation. The government had bilateral and regional law enforcement agreements with France (French Guiana), Brazil, and Guyana that included joint efforts to combat trafficking; the government and France expanded the geographic areas for joint patrols. The government trained police inspectors on trafficking investigations and victim identification. The Attorney General voiced the need for expanded cooperation between the TIP Unit and the Cybercrimes Unit to better investigate potential recruitment and exploitation through online platforms.

The government increased protection efforts. The government identified 25 victims, including 17 Cuban women, one Colombian woman, one Venezuelan woman, and two Surinamese girls exploited in sex trafficking as well as one Indian man exploited in labor trafficking; in addition, the government identified three previously unidentified victims associated with a 2021 investigation into a potential trafficking case in French Guiana. This compared with one potential victim identified in 2022 and 15 victims in 2021. A foreign embassy identified four additional Cuban women as sex trafficking victims. Two victims, including one child, were identified after self-reporting their situations to local police. The government reported police and immigration officials screened at-risk populations, including migrants and those in commercial sex, for trafficking, normally prior to detention or arrest; officials identified 18 victims during screenings at commercial sex establishments. The TIP Unit, the Prosecutors’ Office, the Directorate of National Security, and the Military Police, which was in charge of immigration services, also coordinated to screen for trafficking indicators among at-risk populations arriving at the international airport. The Prosecutors’ Office developed an intake form to aid officials to quickly make initial assessments of potential victims identified among larger groups before referring them for additional screening. The constituent agencies of the Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Working Group implemented the First Response to the Victim of Trafficking in Persons Protocol. The Protocol, for police and other first responders, outlined procedures for interacting with potential trafficking victims, the process from identification to providing essential services, and the rights of victims. The TIP Working Group also finalized and began to implement and provide ongoing training on new SOPs for officials from other ministries on victim service processing following identification.

The government provided shelter and other services to 26 victims. The TIP Unit was responsible for providing almost all shelter and other services for victims, given the absence of trafficking-focused NGOs in the country. An international organization and foreign donor also provided emergency assistance, including food, clothing, and medical assistance for 14 victims, in addition to housing support for one. Foreign and Surinamese victims and those with disabilities had equal access to services. Officials offered services to potential victims upon first encounter with them. Government agencies did not have victim assistance funds specifically allocated but made resources available as needed from their general budgets. The TIP Unit’s emergency shelter, funded through the police’s budget, had space for up to six people in its office building, a former residence. The emergency shelter provided services to male and female victims for up to three months during the initial stages of investigations against alleged traffickers. Authorities also allowed foreign victims to stay with people they knew and arranged for them to remain in contact with the TIP Unit. The government previously reported victims could leave the emergency shelter at will; however, a group of victims filed a complaint with an international organization regarding their inability to leave the shelter at will, inability to use phones, and overcrowding in the shelter. The TIP Unit subsequently permitted the victims to leave the shelter to reside with relatives or acquaintances, return to their home country, or remain in the shelter.

With the assistance of the Prosecutors’ Office, in March 2024, the TIP Unit opened an additional shelter to provide long-term accommodation for up to six adult male or female victims; the Human Rights Office of the Ministry of Justice and Police also assisted the TIP Unit to secure funding to furnish the shelter. The TIP Unit employed a social worker to oversee services at both locations. The TIP Unit and an international organization reported a need for training on shelter service provision. The government secured an SRD 1,468,920 ($40,000) grant from an international organization for shelter operations and prepared additional funding proposals for a foreign donor. There were no specialized shelter services for child trafficking victims. Authorities allowed children who did not want to return to their homes to either enter a childcare facility or stay with a foster family; authorities placed one child victim in a children’s home. Special counseling was available for child victims along with their families. Authorities did not require victim cooperation with investigations or prosecutions in order to receive services, including the ability to apply for temporary or permanent residency. The government reported processing applications on behalf of 10 foreign victims to obtain residency status; the applications remained in process; however, the government provided the victims with temporary protection from deportation and, for the four victims who had not already found work in the country, assistance in obtaining employment. Despite the absence of anti-trafficking NGOs operating in Suriname, some officials made efforts to establish relationships and collaborate with international organizations or other groups that did not have trafficking in their specific remit, including in relation to arranging longer-term assistance for the 10 foreign victims who applied for residency.

The government did not offer a special visa category for victims. Victim-witnesses could move freely in the country or travel abroad. Police provided services to victim-witnesses, but authorities did not protect victims’ identities during trials. Authorities provided counseling and some legal support to victims in judicial processes; however, previous reports indicated a need for victims to have their own legal representation during trials to better represent their interests and strengthen legal cases. To address these concerns, the government enabled the TIP Unit to request legal assistance from the Office of Legal Aid at the Ministry of Justice and Police; the TIP Unit also began drafting a formal protocol for victims automatically to receive legal assistance. Courts could obtain written or oral testimony from victims in the early stages of investigations in case victims were not available during the trial process, including for foreign victims who returned to their countries of origin before completion of the trial, although this could weaken testimony in cases where authorities did not provide victims time for recovery and reflection before giving testimony. Courts allowed virtual testimony, but it was not commonly used; testifying from a foreign country was not possible. Victims could speak directly to a counselor or a member of the Prosecutors’ Office instead of the police if they preferred. In the case of foreign victims, prosecutors usually used a victim’s initial report as a formal criminal complaint and testimony in the case, as victims often returned to their countries of origin before completion of the trial; in almost all cases courts lost contact once the victim departed the country. Victims had the right to testify after providing an initial statement and/or after receiving counseling. Victims had the right to seek compensation through a civil process, though no such case has ever been filed. The government did not maintain a victim compensation fund.

The government lacked sufficient resources to fund victims’ repatriation but worked with foreign embassies and international organizations to fund and carry out such repatriations; in other cases, victims paid for their own repatriation. Airlines could also refuse to return passengers denied entry into the country, making them vulnerable to trafficking. The government cooperated with foreign governments on victim assistance as part of its standard protocol when it identified foreign victims. Outside observers previously reported the process for collaboration between the TIP Unit and embassies on victim support was cumbersome and bureaucratic, impacting the response time of embassies to provide essential support to their citizens.

The government slightly increased prevention efforts. The government utilized a 2023-2024 NAP; the government updated NAPs annually. The TIP Working Group met regularly both in-person and by phone, effectively coordinated government efforts, and was chaired by the Director of Operations of the Ministry of Justice and Police. The government did not seek or incorporate input from survivors, NGOs, or international organizations in drafting the annual NAP or for other laws or policies. The government did not allocate funding specifically for trafficking included in the NAP; funding for such activities came from the overall budgets of the respective agencies. Lack of sufficient funding due to generally low funds and budget crises impacted the ability of the TIP Working Group to implement some activities included in the NAP; however, observers noted officials successfully obtained supplemental funding from foreign donors and international organizations.

The government continued to operate a 24-hour anti-trafficking hotline, which was available in Dutch, English, and Sranan Tongo. The TIP Unit provided training to hotline staff. The TIP Unit had two social media telephone numbers that could be used to report trafficking cases. The government did not keep statistics on calls or victims identified through the hotline or by way of social media. The government raised awareness of the anti-trafficking hotline through brochures and flyers posted throughout the country. The TIP Unit’s website provided information on and the differences between trafficking and migrant smuggling, gave visitors the ability to report suspect situations, and detailed updated information on the TIP Unit’s activities. The TIP Unit continued a public awareness campaign in secondary schools. The Prosecutors’ Office, in cooperation with an international organization, launched an awareness campaign on grooming and child pornography that may have reached children at risk of sex trafficking. The TIP Unit delivered a training on trafficking for senior government officials. The government did not conduct formal research on trafficking or publicly post an assessment of its anti-trafficking efforts but made the information available upon request.

Labor laws prohibited employers, recruiters, and labor agents from charging workers recruitment fees, confiscating workers’ passports or travel documents, switching contracts without workers’ consent, or withholding wages as a means of keeping workers in a state of compelled service. Labor laws required all employment agencies to be licensed before recruiting either Surinamese or foreign employees, and they had to receive permission from the Ministry of Labor before entering into work mediation with employees. Documented migrant workers could change employers without prior notification or special permission; the employer maintained the burden of reporting their employment. The Labor Inspectorate regularly checked the paperwork of foreign workers vulnerable to labor trafficking at job sites and fined employers for violations; labor inspectors also screened for trafficking indicators. The TIP Unit collaborated with the Labor Inspectorate on joint checks of businesses; while they did not identify any cases of human trafficking, the Labor Inspectorate issued fines for businesses who employed foreign workers without the proper documentation. In addition, the TIP Unit and the Alien Police conducted inspections of clubs and other establishments where migrant workers were known to work. The Maritime Authority, the military, the maritime police, and the Coast Guard continued inspections of vessels entering Suriname’s waters to identify suspicious activities, including trafficking, and the TIP Unit continued weekly patrols with the Maritime Police. Most labor inspections were unannounced, but the law did not allow labor inspectors to inspect private homes or farms. The government reported fining businesses up to 250 SRD ($6.81) for each foreign worker employed without having the proper registration paperwork. No inspectors were solely dedicated to child labor, but the government trained all inspectors on identifying child labor and handling of suspected cases. The government warned businesses against hiring foreign workers without proper documentation and provided information on employment scams and fraudulent job offerings to businesses and workers.

Observers noted gaps in government policies and regulations as well as in the implementation of rules and procedures, which enabled traffickers to exploit victims. In April 2023, the government reinstated visa requirements for 21 countries after its evaluation that most of the countries’ visitors had not arrived for legitimate purposes; various media outlets, in previous years, reported groups of migrants entered the country in an irregular status. The TIP Unit attempted to request information from the Cuban embassy regarding the contract arrangements of Cuban medical professionals. However, the government did not report measures to screen Cuban medical workers residing in the country for trafficking indicators. Limited unemployment benefits only went to citizens. The government did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts. The government did not make efforts to reduce participation in international and domestic extraterritorial child sexual commercial exploitation.

As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Suriname, and traffickers exploit victims from Suriname abroad. Reported cases of trafficking in Suriname’s sparsely populated and remote jungle interior, which constitutes approximately 80 percent of the country, have increased in recent years; limited government presence in the interior renders the full scope of the problem unknown. Weak immigration policies, difficulty in controlling Suriname’s borders, and the draw of the gold and timber trade have led to an influx of migrants from different countries entering Suriname legally and remaining in country after their legal stay expires. These persons become particularly vulnerable to sex and labor trafficking. Traffickers target the increasing influx of asylum-seekers and migrants, many of whom lack legal status and protection, into and through Suriname, particularly those from Haiti and Venezuela, as well as those from Brazil, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, the PRC, Africa, and South-Central Asia. Asylum-seekers and migrant women and girls are especially at risk for sex trafficking in Suriname, including in brothels, massage parlors, hair salons, and illegal gold mining camps in Suriname’s interior. Individuals involved in commercial sex advertised in newspapers and social media are also at risk for trafficking. Adult and child migrant workers in agriculture, retail shops, construction, and on fishing boats off Suriname’s coast are at risk of trafficking, as are children working in agriculture, small construction, gold mines, and informal urban sectors. Given their irregular status, asylum-seekers and migrant groups may avoid seeking assistance from the authorities for fear of criminalization or deportation, making them vulnerable to traffickers. In March 2020, authorities signed an agreement with the Cuban government to allow 120 Cuban medical workers to help combat the pandemic; 51 Cubans came to the country in 2021, joining approximately 50 already in the country. Following their departure, in June 2022, a group of 22 Cuban medical workers arrived in the country. Government-affiliated Cuban workers may have been forced to work by the Cuban government. PRC national-run associations, and allegedly some Hong Kong traffickers, recruit and exploit PRC national immigrants in sex and labor trafficking in the mining, service, and construction sectors. Surinamese women in neighboring countries are at risk of sex trafficking. Traffickers may transport victims through routes in Suriname’s interior that bypass official checkpoints. There are reports of corruption and local official complicity in trafficking crimes that may impede anti-trafficking efforts. While traffickers are predominantly men, authorities have also prosecuted and convicted women traffickers. Individuals engaged in commercial sex online, in private homes, or in poorly protected clubs in the interior remained following the lifting of pandemic restrictions in March 2022, increasing their vulnerability. Organizations representing the HIV positive and LGBTQI+ communities also reported these groups became particularly at risk as they faced marginalization and increased poverty because of the pandemic. The pandemic increased the trafficking risk for lower-skilled individuals unable to find work and deteriorating economic conditions following the pandemic have driven more adults into commercial sex to earn additional income and have likely increased the number of child trafficking victims, including familial trafficking. In January 2023, the government reported that 5,000 children, mostly in the interior of Suriname, did not return to school in order to help their parents following the end of pandemic restrictions; these children are vulnerable to trafficking. Although there were no reports of extraterritorial child sexual commercial exploitation, it may have occurred.